Climate Change and Agricultural Productivity (ISAC)

Overview

The growing world population, combined with an increase in natural disasters and climate instability caused by global warming, will put unprecedented pressure on land resources, particularly agricultural production. ISAC is using a new generation of high-frequency, high-resolution sensors to significantly improve agricultural monitoring in an environment that is being changed by global warming.

The project will develop three services: satellite vegetation maps that have much greater spatial detail than is currently available; enhanced risk assessment for drought-related crop damage; and short- and long-term crop yield forecasts based on global climate change predictions.

The services will provide more accurate information to private agricultural insurers working with farmers in Europe, and to food security and emergency response experts who are developing sustainable land management systems in Africa.

IIASA Research

Institute researchers are developing a core information service for detecting agricultural change, which is part of the third service being created by ISAC. Data from the EPIC crop model and the GLOBIOM land-use change model are being integrated with the goal of estimating the impact of climate change on agriculture and food security.

Last edited: 22 June 2012